RAMS CHARGE IN ROUND THREE |
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OLATHE, KS: After poor showings in the opening two rounds, the Texas Wesleyan Rams had their backs against the wall in a critical round three at the NAIA Men’s Golf National Championship. The Rams entered play in a tie for fifteenth position knowing that the field would be cut to seventeen teams at the end of the day. With the pressure on, Texas Wesleyan charged through the field, shooting even par on the day.
It was just the seventh time in the tournament that a team turned in a card of 288 or better, and it was enough for the Rams to jump from fifteenth all the way to eighth position.
“We felt some pressure from the cut, knowing that we hadn’t played our best,” commented head coach Kevin Millikan, “but we handled the pressure and our emotions very well.”
Lance Vasquez led the way by shooting three-under 69, after only five players had broken 70 in the previous two rounds. That was enough to take Vasquez from thirty-fourth to twelfth place in the individual scoring.
The Rams also got a much-needed boost from Justin Smith who had struggled in the first two rounds. Smith played even par to post his first scoring round of the tournament. Mitch Hendon added an even par 72 and Ryan Stephens was three-over 75. Reino Deetlefs shot six over on the front nine, but held par on the back nine to finish at 78 for the day.
“I’m very proud of our guys, and hopefully we can play well tomorrow and move into the top five,” Millikan said. The Rams are currently five strokes behind fifth place Point Loma Nazarene and eight shots back of fourth place St. Ambrose.
Oklahoma City turned in the best team round of the tournament at three-under to extend its lead with an overall score of 867. Another Region VI team, Oklahoma Christian sits in second place at 879 after shooting even par today.
Point Loma Nazarene’s Joe Prince maintained his individual lead by shooting two-under on the day to move to seven-under (209) for the tournament.
The top seventeen teams and forty individuals (plus ties) will continue play in tomorrow’s final round. The competition for the Rams will begin at 8:00 a.m. when Justin Smith tees off at hole number one. Fans can check a complete listing of tee times and continue to watch live scoring of the event by using the link at www.ramsports.net or going directly to the NAIA website at www.naia.org.
Fin. Player Scores Total T12 Lance Vasquez 73 78 69 220 T37 Mitch Hendon 75 78 72 225 T50 Ryan Stephens 77 75 75 227 T67 Reino Deetlefs 77 74 78 229 T96 Justin Smith 81 80 72 233 8 Texas Wesleyan 302 305 288 895
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